We Choose Welcome

Taking advantage of a rare 60-degree day just before Ash Wednesday, I decided it was time to clean the pavilion in the Memorial Garden. Because of the lingering cold and heavy snow, the stable—which had housed our live nativity scene—was still filled with hay bales and corn stalks.

When I entered the church, Pastor Chris noticed my gardening gloves and asked, “What are you doing?” I replied, “I’m cleaning the pavilion. Lent is starting, but it’s still Christmas in the garden. The pavilion has to be ready to celebrate Easter!”

It made me wonder: Is this what the prophets had in mind? Isaiah 40:3–5 tells us: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together.”

Brothers and sisters, we have entered the Lenten season—a time of intentional preparation and meditation as we approach the celebration of Jesus’ victory from death to life. It is a time to remind ourselves that our life in Christ is renewed every day. As 2 Corinthians 4:16 encourages us: “Therefore let us not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.”

During Lent, we are invited to acknowledge our need for repentance and God’s mercy. We were created to experience joy in communion with God, to love one another, and to live in harmony with creation. Sadly, our rebellion often fractures that harmony. However, God, as a loving and compassionate Father, carried out the plan of redemption through our Lord Jesus Christ. We are all called to repentance, and through confession, we find restoration: “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

To help you navigate this season, we have provided a guide, Daily Prayers for the Spiritual Practice of Hospitality and Welcome (from We Choose Welcome), available in both English and Spanish. Families in the Latino ministry have received their copies, along with a candle to light during their times of shared prayer. In a world that often obscures the Gospel, we must be reminded of the importance of practicing hospitality and welcoming others into our hearts.

As disciples of Jesus, we are called to resist all that separates us from God, our neighbors, and creation. May the breath of life that God gives us during this Lenten season guide our self-examination as we prepare for the great three days of the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Pastor Edwin

Reprinted from the March 2026 newsletter.

Season of Love

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16

In a world where injustice, hatred, discrimination, and division continue to cause pain and death among humanity, we, the children of light, are called to show to the world that our light provides us with hope, peace, joy, and love. Considering that we are entering the season of love, I want to take this opportunity to focus my article on that this month. As children of light, the practice of love is one of our qualities that tells the world who we are and how we identify ourselves to others.

The decorative season of Christmas, New Year’s, and Epiphany is now behind us. Now, we find ourselves in a time when we are reminded of the importance of practicing love. Stores are filled with decorations and items, and the barrage of advertisements on TV and social media is constant to remind us of the season and encourage our consumerism. In the Bible, the children of light are also reminded and called to practice love in their daily lives. Texts such as:

  • “When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God.” Leviticus 19:33-34
  • “I have loved you with an everlasting love;I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.” Jeremiah 31:3
  • “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” Leviticus 19:18
  • “Beloved, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 4:7-8
  • “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35
  • “And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Colossians 3:14
  • “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Romans 12:10
  • “And walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Ephesians 5:2
  • “This is the message you have heard from the beginning: that we should love one another.” John 3:11
  • “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” John 14:15

When I attended the Youth Gathering in New Orleans, I had the opportunity to get an Old Lutheran sweatshirt. Old Lutheran is a non-profit organization dedicated to strengthening, educating, and helping our brothers and sisters around the world. What caught my attention on the sweatshirt were the words: Love God. Love People. The End. We Christians are called to Love God, Love People. The practice of love is how we will counteract the darkness promoted among us. We, the children of light, are called to be the difference and a clear example of Jesus’ presence in the world. We, the children of light, are called to listen to our God revealed in the person of Jesus. If the world wants to tell us to hate, to discriminate and to oppress others, we the children of the light are called to follow what God commands us.

AMA DIOS. AMA GENTE. EL FIN —LOVE GOD. LOVE PEOPLE. THE END.

Pastor Edwin Aparicio

Death Is Not the End

November has arrived, marking a time to remember our loved ones who have passed away and now rest in the eternal home prepared for them and for us. Early this month, we celebrate All Saints’ Sunday, which in the Latin American community is known as Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). This vibrant celebration, held on November 1st and 2nd, is when families honor their dead by preparing La Ofrenda.

La Ofrenda is a beautiful altar where we place photographs of our loved ones, along with their favorite foods, drinks, and candy. We also incorporated other objects that were meaningful to them. The signature flower used in the decoration is the Cempasúchil, or Flor de Muerto (Flower of the Dead). While this flower is iconic in many places, it’s worth noting that it isn’t universal; many countries in the region simply use a variety of flowers.

The way Día de los Muertos is celebrated varies significantly. In El Salvador, for example, the focus on November 2nd is centered on the cemetery. I remember preparing towels, water, paint, candles, and flowers to take with us. Many times, I accompanied my mother to the cemetery to wash and paint the graves of my grandparents and other relatives. The main celebration in El Salvador, and in many other Latin American countries, takes place almost entirely at the gravesite, with families dedicating their time to decorating their loved ones’ resting places. When I moved to the United States, I realized that in Mexico, the Día de los Muertos traditions span both the cemetery and the home. In addition to visiting the graves, families prepare a complete Ofrenda at home.

In our Latino ministry, La Ofrenda is essential. We create an altar and invite families to contribute photographs, objects, food, and flowers. As we read their names, we thank God for the life they lived on earth and for welcoming them into the place He promised. This is a faith rooted in the hope expressed in John 14:2: “My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?”

Last year, my wife, my daughters, and I decided to establish our own family tradition by creating an Ofrenda in our house every year. We incorporated the traditional Cempasúchil flowers, other types of flowers, leaves, and even a pumpkin. This blending of elements is a way to honor the cultures of Mexico, El Salvador, and the United States within our home.

Brothers and sisters, for me La Ofrenda with the photographs of our beloved ones is more than a tradition; it is also a tradition that helps us remember that death is not the end of our journey. Though the grief may be heavy at first, we believe that death is in fact, the glorious beginning of a new and eternal life. While we are thankful for this promise every day, it is essential to have a special moment to honor those who have gone ahead of us. Furthermore, this enduring tradition allows us to continue sharing and teaching our community the powerful message that Jesus has set us free and given us the gift of salvation.

Pastor Edwin

The Subversive Season

In my first article of this year 2025, I highlighted the moments of joy and fellowship we had during the month of December. Last month, I shared with you all about my experience on my recent trip to El Salvador. And as the days and weeks drew closer to writing this month’s article, I’ve been thinking about what I should write about. Because we are in the season of Lent, I finally came to the conclusion to write about the season of uncertainty that many families are facing right now and will face in the days to come.

Last month I was at an event held by our synod called Together in Mission. My wife and I were in charge of preparing a table that shared the story of  the partnership between the Greater of Milwaukee Synod and the Salvadoran Lutheran Church. On the table, we decided to put a replica of the Subversive Cross on our display table. This cross was used by the Salvadoran Lutheran Church in a special service of reconciliation during the Civil War. The church asked the congregation to write on the cross the injustice they were going through. Many of them wrote words like hunger, discrimination against women, lust for power, murder, violence, persecution of the church, among others.

If I had the opportunity to write on the Subversive Cross right now, I would write the word persecution again. Yes, an unprecedented physical, psychological, inhuman persecution. A reality that many communities are going through right now and with whom we as Christian leaders are called to walk and pray with them on this new uncertain journey that for some has already caused increased anxiety, fear, and in some cases mourning due to the harassment they have received.

Many of you have probably heard the story of a Latina student from a school in Gainesville, Texas who died by suicide as a result of the constant harassment she received from other students. The 11-year-old girl was harassed and told that immigration would be called to deport her family. After a few days in the hospital, the girl sadly passed away. After hearing this story, I asked myself the question: Are these actions part of the kingdom of God? Is this the kingdom that Jesus brought to the world? Is this the kingdom that he taught us? I don’t think so. Jesus did not come to the world to establish a kingdom of oppression, harassment, persecution, hatred, exclusion and mockery. On the contrary, the kingdom of God that Jesus describes is a way of being and living characterized by love, compassion, justice and peace. In John 13:34-35, Jesus tells us, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Matthew 25:35 says, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,” it gives all of us the characteristics that the kingdom of God on earth should have.

Brothers and sisters, as we walk through this season of Lent, a time of spiritual preparation as we wait to relive and reflect on how God’s love was poured out through Jesus Christ on the cross to free all of humanity, and as we walk through this uncertain time, let’s take some time to reflect on the recent events that are impacting many communities. Seeing and hearing what is happening around many communities, I ask myself the question and invite you to meditate and reflect with me. Is this the kingdom that Jesus brought to us?

Jesus sent his disciples out two by two to proclaim the good news and said to them, “Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’” Lucas 10.9

 Pastor Edwin

Las Posadas

Another year of ministry begins here at Ascension! As we continue on the mission of proclaiming the kingdom of God, each year through our different ministries we try to innovate and do new things together.

In my sermon on the fourth Sunday of Advent I said this “We are carriers of a multicultural ministry where the grace of God is revealed in many ways and with many traditions that you never imagined would take place in this place, for example seeing a donkey walking around the building at Las Posadas. If that is not enough, seeing its three shepherds walking around pulling their sheep….”

As you already know, Las Posadas is an event that has become a tradition in the Advent season at Ascension. This year before our traditional walk around the Church we incorporated a live nativity. The angels and three shepherds joined the holy family in their stay in the manger next to the donkey and two wonderful sheep in very, very cold weather. The cold weather did not prevent the holy family, the angels, the animals, the shepherds, you and many visitors from enjoying a wonderful live Christmas and our journey with the holy family in their search for refuge. 

As we began planning, in a moment of weakness I mentioned that it would be nice to have luminaries again. The secretary of Latino ministries, who besides being the musician in our Spanish worship is also my wife, liked that idea, but she told me it would be better to use them on the pathway to the Ash Gardens. She said it would give people another thing to do if they arrived early for the live nativity and it would connect the nativity to the empty crosses. She said it would look more beautiful than in the parking lot. To be honest, I did not want to add anything else to the event. I told my wife that if she wanted to be in charge she could do it. She told me that many of you would like it. You know what, my wife was right, the idea of ​​adding the illuminated walkway in the middle of the snow to the memorial garden was beautiful and added something special to the event and will likely be a new part of our tradition.

I am so grateful to everyone who helped with the posadas event, all the families from the Latina ministry were there cooking the food, some of you from the English ministry helped with the Christmas preparation, with the bonfires, the lights, donating money, washing dishes and setting up the Spanish ministry sanctuary after work! That is the kind of kingdom of God that Ascension offers to our community. A place where God’s mission is actively working through us.

Stephen Bouman in his book The Mission Table says, “Life in Christ asks us to step out continually into wider world, deeper spiritual insights, passionate engagement with the calling we have from God.” As we walk into this new year of ministry, may the star that guided the wise men to the light of the world continue to guide each of you and our congregation in 2025.

Happy New Year!

Pastor Edwin

Life’s Moments

After having celebrated Thanksgiving Day with family and friends, now is the time to begin preparing for our end-of-year celebrations with families. As a church, leaders are also preparing so that in this Advent season of 2024, you, your family, and those you invite to visit Ascension can experience and meditate upon God becoming human in a variety of traditions.

As a multicultural congregation, we have the gift of offering an Advent season in which we can see, know, and experience God’s human revelation in various ways but with the same purpose. Activities such as the Advent Concert Worship, the Sunday school program, the annunciation of the angel, live nativity, the posadas, Christmas Eve, the visit of the three wise men in January, and Family Day in February. All of these revive us and remind us of the origin of our history as a Christian community.

On Thursday, Dec. 12, at 6 a.m., you are invited to join us in the Spanish Sanctuary where we will have the celebration of the Annunciation, the day in which we remember when the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and revealed God’s will that she would become the means by which the Word would become flesh and dwell among us. This celebration will be accompanied by mariachi music, and a shared breakfast after worship.

On Saturday, Dec. 21, we hope that you will join us, accompany us and experience how the Holy Family arrives in Bethlehem as strangers looking for a refuge that was not found. As Luke 2:7 says, “and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.” The Christmas story is a reminder for us that the first years of Jesus’s life was spent as a migrant, searching for housing and safety. The Holy Family’s journey as foreigners began on their way to Bethlehem and continued on their trip to Egypt in search of refuge due to persecution by King Herod. For this reason, it is our tradition to begin Las Posadas with the Immigrant’s Creed, a creed that professes the Christian faith through the lens of an immigrant.

I believe in Almighty God, who guided the people in exile and in exodus, the God of Joseph in Egypt and Daniel in Babylon, the God of foreigners and immigrants.

I believe in Jesus Christ, a displaced Galilean, who was born away from his people and his home, who fled his country with his parents when his life was in danger, and returning to his own country suffered the oppression of the tyrant Pontius Pilate, the servant of a foreign power, who then was persecuted, beaten, and finally tortured, accused and condemned to death unjustly. But on the third day, this scorned Jesus rose from the dead, not as a foreigner but to offer us citizenship in heaven.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the eternal immigrant from God’s kingdom among us, who speaks all languages, lives in all countries, and reunites all races.

I believe that the church is the secure home for the foreigner and for all believers who constitute it, who speak the same language and have the same purpose. I believe that the communion of the saints begins when we accept the diversity of the saints.

I believe in the forgiveness of sin, which makes us all equal, and in reconciliation, which identifies us more than does race, language, or nationality.

I believe that in the resurrection God will unite us as one people in which all are distinct and all are alike at the same time. Beyond this world, I believe in life eternal in which no one will be an immigrant but all will be citizens of God’s kingdom, which will never end. Amen.

Feliz Navidad!

Pastor Edwin

Preparing for Lent

Last month, I had the opportunity to travel with Pastor Chris and Pastor Tony to New Orleans to attend a national church event called The Extravaganza. This is an annual gathering of children, youth and family ministry leaders from across the ELCA. It is so much more than a conference; it’s space to be grow, to worship, to be inspired, it’s learning from colleagues across the country, it’s sharing your insight with others, it’s informative and transformative. This is an event to renew, learn, and connect with others as a way to strengthen our local ministries.

The extravaganza takes place every year in different cities. In the year in which the Youth Gathering is happening, the extravaganza takes place in the same city. This year the gathering was in New Orleans, where the Youth Gathering  will be held in July. More than 800 leaders met to connect, renew ourselves and get to know the city to which we will bring our youth.

I am very grateful to God that I had the opportunity to immerse myself in something new to me as I continued to walk and learn in this new role as a pastor and youth leader in the US. Not only did I learn about the resources available for children, youth and family ministry, but I also learned a little about the city of New Orleans. To be honest, I didn’t know anything about New Orleans before I went. I heard some jokes in our planning meetings about beads, but I had no idea what anyone was talking about.

One of the first things I noticed when I arrived in the city were the colorful souvenirs available. Eventually we had the opportunity to have free time to explore the city. On my walk, I went into the store to buy the prizes for the chili cook-off. Inside the store, I could see that many t-shirts had the word “Bourbon St.” on it. I approached one of the store workers and he explained its the meaning. The worker explained the cultural traditions behind Mardi Gras, but did not explain me the theology behind this celebration. Later, I found out that, this celebration responds to the Christian calendar that begins on Epiphany and concludes the night before Ash Wednesday. During this time, as you all know, people tend to eat as much as possible before they have to deprive themselves of certain foods during Lent.

This tradition reminds me of the call that God always makes to each of us to prepare day after day, not just during Mardi Gras or Lent. God speaks to us, encourages us and reveals to us his great mercy. As we enter into the season of Lent in this month of February, let us think about the things that often try to prevent us from discovering and experiencing God’s love. 

This 40-day journey is a time to reflect and renew as we prepare ourself to remember and celebrate the passion, death, and resurrection of our Savior in “Semana Santa.”  Whether you choose to indulge during the days of Mardi Gras season, or give something up for Lent, or neither, may this time of year help you feel closer to God regardless of your personal journey of faith.

 Pastor Edwin Aparicio

Goodbye 2023, Welcome 2024

Last year when we discovered New Year’s Day was going to be a Sunday, it created a challenge. New Year’s Eve is perhaps the biggest holiday in Latino culture, with staying out all night being the norm, regardless of age. I wondered what to do about worship that Sunday. Should we move it to Saturday, make it later in the day? Cancelling wasn’t any option for me. I decided that we were going to stay with the 10:45 time, but we weren’t going to even try to have a normal Sunday service. Instead of rows of chairs, everyone was seated at a table. The welcome table had pastries and hot chocolate. We started worship with paper to write prayer requests. At the conclusion of worship, we headed outside where we prayed as we sent our petitions to God in the flames of a fire. Everyone appreciated the worship so much that we returned to a similar format again this year. Those of you who were at 10:45 service this year on December 31 were probably wondering what was happening in the parking lot.

I believe that our New Year’s prayers transcend culture and you can pray them, even if it’s not January 1 on the calendar when you read this article.

Prayers for Letting Go of Pain
In the past year, we experienced moments of both physical and emotional pain. We experienced loss and worry. Living Lord, Your love has held us as you walked alongside us during our moments of suffering. Even in our darkest moments, you never left our side. Now may your hope and healing lead us to a place of restoration. Help us to be strong enough to forgive those who have hurt us. Help us to see that forgiveness is a gift we give ourselves. Help us to be free from resentment and anger. As our prayers of pain turn to ash, may we also let go of our pain from this past year and beyond.

Prayers of Thanksgiving
In the past year, we have had moments of blessings big and small. Help us to remember to approach life with gratitude. We thank you for the small moments that brought us quiet moments of beauty: a painted sky at sunrise, shared laughter, and a million moments that we have already forgotten. We thank you for the big moments: the arrival of babies, marriages, success at work, and other things we lift up to you. We send our prayers of thanksgiving to you.

Prayers of Hopes and Dreams
Dear God, With the new year, we have the opportunity for a fresh start to achieve our goals and dreams. We ask that you give us the wisdom to make the right choices to achieve these dreams and the strength to persevere. While we hope for a path without obstacles, allow us to learn from the difficulties we face. Teach us to understand that what we hope for may not be what is best for us in the long run, and to have faith in your plan. Help us to maintain our goodness in our efforts to achieve dreams. We know that you want what is best for us and we are grateful for the blessings that will come to us in the next year. In our prayers and in the flames, we send to you our prayers for our hopes for 2024. 

May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice. (Psalm 141:2)

Happy New Year!

Pastor Edwin

Life’s Moments

The Advent season has arrived, and with it also the end of another liturgical year in this continuous journey of faith as Christians. But what has this year that we are about to end left us? The answers will of course be different because each of us experiences different moments in our lives. The book of Ecclesiastes of the Old Testament tells us: Everything has its time, moment of birth and moments of death, moments to plant and moments to harvest, moments to hurt and moments to heal, moments to cry and moments to laugh, moments to scatter stones and moments to pile up, moments to welcome and moments to say goodbye.

Surely many of us identify with some, if not all, of these moments as we come to the end of the year. I experienced many of those moments this year. Moments to laugh and celebrate when I clicked send to submit my final paper for seminary, moments to laugh and celebrate with my family and all of you at my graduation, moments to celebrate and laugh when you said yes to call me as your third pastor, moments of welcome, hospitality and celebration with the visit of the delegation of El Salvador for my ordination and installation. Moments of tears, death and farewell were present two months after my ordination with the death of my father. Moments to continue planting the gospel and continue harvesting in our ministry, moments to celebrate welcoming new members, moments to celebrate baptisms and welcome them to the body of Christ, moments to continue keeping our multicultural traditions alive in our ministry and more.

In the church, these moments of life are built into the church year with the different seasons: Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent and Holy Week, Easter and Pentecost. We begin the church year with the anticipation of the birth of Jesus. As is tradition, our church celebrates Advent and Christmas in a multicultural way. It is the church’s moment of a time of  quiet reflection and anticipation, although expressed in different ways.

The Latino ministry will celebrate the Annunciation with mariachi at 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 12, as a way of bringing our Lutheran theology to the traditional festival of Guadalupe. If you would like to join us and learn about this tradition, you are invited to wake up early and bring a breakfast dish to share.

Another of the moments we will have is Las Posadas with mariachi. On Saturday, Dec. 16, at 6 p.m., we will hold a procession outside the church and accompany the Holy Family during their time in Bethlehem looking for an inn. At last, an innkeeper will welcome us with a banquet, music and piñata! We hope you will join us.

In the Latino world, the big party is Christmas Eve. Families gather and celebrate all night long. Some of their celebrations can last until dawn. Santa rarely visits homes in Spanish-speaking countries. Families may exchange a gift on Christmas, New Year’s or Three Kings Day, so without the arrival of Santa, there’s no need for an early Christmas Eve. Latino families in the United States are visited by Santa, but the tradition of an all-night party remains.

As I mentioned at the beginning, everything has its moment. It could be that this year for you has been full of many good and bad moments, loneliness, anxiety, mourning, joy, etc., but during this time of Advent and Christmas let us remember the phrases that the prophet Isaiah tells us: The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Regardless of where you find yourself this season, may it also be a season of peace for you.

Pastor Edwin